Blog No. 234: Brave Souls in the Military, Immigrants Make Us Great, Chicken Rice Paper Recipe
Special note: As I handed each police officer a flower today at the demonstration down Fifth Avenue in New York City, I said: “With this flower I’d like to show that we are peaceful protesters and I want to thank you for your service. We’re all in this together and I hope that your allegiance will be to the United States Constitution and not to the one person in the White House. Thanks again for being our partners in this. As I pointed around us, I said: “look at us—your police force—our protesters—so beautiful—a nation of immigrants!” We need to work together and we need the police force and the military to be with us. America does not believe in kings…
I have been to many demonstrations in my 60+ years and never before did I feel that the police force was actually on our side in this. Great feeling! I gave out probably thirty flowers and aside from smiles and thank yous from almost every single officer, I even got myself a warm hug from one of them.
Brave Souls in the Military
Who would have ever thought we would be here, in America, in 2025! My dad did! I often think back to him, who became politicized in the army durng World War II, was active in left wing politics and civil rights during his whole life, lived through Joe McCarthy times, and who warned me many moons ago to keep myself off lists, to give money but do it anonymously, and generally be aware that fascism is lurking right around the corner...
Today I feature a few very brave souls in the military who are daring to speak out, in the face of real life consequences, in order to make the point that as military people, they have sworn an oath to the consitution, not to one man...Call me an optimist, but I am hoping that there are many more people like them, who are not interested in entering into combat with their own fellow citizens...
Click this link to hear from another courageous soul standing up for freedom.
And Congressman Mike Levin calls attention to some more military personnel standing up on his website-- Here's another hero he has highlighted. Let this be the beginning of a movement, like the Vietnam Vets Against the War of the Vietnam era.
This is a very important part of our work in the future: to convince our service people to remain allegiant to the Constitution and not one (insane) bully. We need to do everything to counter the weaponization of our own military against us...
Immigrants Make America Beautiful
What makes America great? I would argue that a lot of it is because of our diversity. Thank you Jimmy Kimmel (and so many of our previous presidents) for speaking out and reminding us of what makes America so beautiful
And here is an organization that reminds us of why people come to the United States. "NEW AMERICAN STORY PROJECT's current project, Welcome Children: Voices of the Central American Refugee Crisis focuses on unaccompanied Central American minors who journeyed thousands of miles to reach the U.S. They tell their stories in their own words while legal, social science and policy experts provide perspective, up-to-date data and detailed context. We hope to foster greater understanding about the ongoing humanitarian crises in Central America." To read their stories in person, click here.
Crispy Chicken Rice Paper Rolls
CRISPY CHICKEN RICE PAPER ROLLS
Courtesy Carmen Iri as seen on instagram @tastyiri_en
INGREDIENTS
10-15 rice paper sheets
3 cups shredded cabbage (approx. 9 0z)
1 medium carrot, grated
1 1/2 cups slided mushrooms
7 oz cooked shredded chicken
1 tbsp soy sauce
INSTRUCTIONS
Combine all the ingredients and cook in a skillet on medium-high heat.
Place ingredients on rice paper, fold it in four, repeat the process and cook in a pan on both sides...Watch Iri's video here for complete illustrated instructions...
Painting of the Week (back by popular demand)
Charity of the Week: American Civil Liberties Union
About The Author
New York City based contemporary artist, Pam Smilow, began writing the creative lifestyle blog “things we love” in an effort to foster a sense of community during times of isolation and reflection. To read more about her and her art, visit her website and check out the essay written by Frank Matheis entitled The Sophisticated Innocence of Pam Smilow.
Pam, Thank you for including the voices of the military who are speaking out. This gave me a great deal of hope.
So Amazing Pam, you are incredible! 🌹✨👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻